Advice for my Warmage

[Kioran]

Hi!

Right now, I´m playing a warmage in one of my games, unsing the "Shackeld City" adventure path, so please no spoilers. Problem is, we are a party of poorly optimized frontliners (including a Half-celestial and Githzerai with something like a Savage-species progression - at ECL 2), whose secondary skillmonkey and primary spellcaster (a cloistered Cleric) was replaced by a Barbarian, because the player was in denial about his wishes when he created the first character, and in a fit, after or DM told us in as many words that our 1 DIN-A4 page backstories didn´t interest him, dumped the Cleric.
Initially, I built the warmage to get into the spirit of the noisy, uncomplicated and moderately optimized party. Now, one session into the first agonizing dungeon crawl (funny how the story evaporates when nobody can read gnomish), I´m starting to feel we´re pinched for serious spellcasting.

What should I do about that (apart from multi-classing into Wizard and forgetting I ever was a warmage, which is easy, but I won´t do it)? My Stats:

Str: 11
Dex: 10
Con: 12
Int: 18
Wis: 15
Cha: 18

Currently, I´m a Human Warmage 2, with Sudden Maximize and Sudden Widen as my feats. I was, initially, planning to use Arcane disciple (hence the wisdom), but forget that it was written primarily for wizards(knowledge religion prereq.) and possibly going into Human Paragon to net me UMD ranks and a Cha-boost.
Unfortunately, we need a healer/utility caster rather fast, since our DM doesn´t allow the MIC (a correct decision in the eyes of all player, btw.) and is still contemplating restricting access to Eternal wands or similiar devices, and we can´t afford living on potions alone. Any ideas how I can expand my options or optimize my power?

[Tempest Fennac]

Could you ask the DM to let you change your class to Favoured Soul or Cleric while changing your stats around? That would solve the problem of not having a healer/support caster. If you wanted to stay as an arcane caster, ask if you could change your class to Wizard or Sorcerer (or Battle Sorcerer if you're allowed to re-optimise your stats).

[Artanis]

You could use the PHB2 variant to get some non-Evocation spells, such as healing. Granted, said spells would suck due to the restrictions on the eclectic knowledge, but at least it's something.



Edit: Or get a non-eternal wand of Cure Light Wounds. With that Charisma, you could probably use it without too many mishaps.

[Person_Man]

Ask your party to all take the Necropolitan template from Libris Mortis.
Everyone spends a little money, loses a class level, and become undead. Being undead comes with all sorts of benefits. You're immune to a ton of different things that commonly kill PCs. Your hit die increase to d12s. And you're healed by Negative Energy.

You take Energy Substitution (Cold) and Lord of the Uttercold (Comp Arcane). Now whenever you use an energy spell, you can make it 1/2 Cold damage and 1/2 Negative Energy damage, without level adjustment to the spell.

Find a way to gain resistance or immunity to Cold. There are a variety of magic items, spells, class abilities, feats, etc., and they're generally pretty easy to get. Or you can just find a Evocation spell that deals energy damage and allows a Fort Save (which undead are immune to).

Your Warmage is now one of the most efficient blasters and healers in the game. You can just dump Uttercold Fireballs on your party in the middle of combat, hurting your enemies, and healing your friends.

[Kioran]

Ask your party to all take the Necropolitan template from Libris Mortis.
Everyone spends a little money, loses a class level, and become undead. Being undead comes with all sorts of benefits. You're immune to a ton of different things that commonly kill PCs. Your hit die increase to d12s. And you're healed by Negative Energy.

You take Energy Substitution (Cold) and Lord of the Uttercold (Comp Arcane). Now whenever you use an energy spell, you can make it 1/2 Cold damage and 1/2 Negative Energy damage, without level adjustment to the spell.

Find a way to gain resistance or immunity to Cold. There are a variety of magic items, spells, class abilities, feats, etc., and they're generally pretty easy to get. Or you can just find a Evocation spell that deals energy damage and allows a Fort Save (which undead are immune to).

Your Warmage is now one of the most efficient blasters and healers in the game. You can just dump Uttercold Fireballs on your party in the middle of combat, hurting your enemies, and healing your friends.

First off, I want to thank you for the ideas - the latter one was quite effective, but, as it stands, there are a few thing to consider:

1: The GM was itchy about letting me switch Wis and Dex after I realized I couldn´t use Arcane disciple. Class changes are straight out. Had I known about the Cleric´s playing dropping him after the introduction, I would have played favored Soul, but as is, I´ve dropper the lvl 6 Rogue in the first chapter with magic missile + Warmage Edge. There´s no way I can trade in my class levels.
2: I can also hardly influence what the rest of my party does. I can ask them, but I hardly think our Pally wants to become undead. Same goes for me, by the way - I´d want to remain vaguely humanoid.

Does anyone have build advice for me, building on what I already established? Feats, Skills, PrCs? That what I figured for myself:

- Staying straight warmage, since most PrCs cost me HP and require taking Feats I have only very limited use for
- lvl 3: Taking "able Learner" as a feat, if it flies, thereafter advancind UMD and knowledge religion
- lvl 6: going into "Arcane Disciple: Healing"

Is it any good? That´s about the quickest way of getting Healing and versatility mid-term. My character (or the Party for that matter) might not survive the next few sessions (our DM is a little hung up on that "Party vs. DM" thing), so anything that works faster would be appreciated.....

[Shisumo]

Is Complete Champion in? Because you can get roughly Paladin-level healing that way with a feat choice or two - the same two you were planning to spend on getting Arcane Disciple, but you start seeing the benefits three levels earlier.

[Galdor Miriel]

We are currently playing Shackled City and its a blast. If I were you I would not worry too much. Just make your warmage how you want him and see if he survives. We have had a high character turnover and currently I have the only character (at level 10) left from the starting six. So if you guys need a healer, you'll probably get one soon. That is, unless your DM has something against playing monsters intelligently to try and keep you alive....

Enjoy the ride